A conventional method of backing up information includes creating a copy of a client computer system's information (an image) and storing the image in a remote location. Thereafter, if a client suffers data loss (such as hard disk failure, destroyed in a fire, data corruption, data integrity error, etc.), only the information on the client machine is lost. Since the image is in a remote location, the image is not affected by the data loss event. Typically, a new machine is used to replace the client computer system, and the image is then restored to the new machine. This restores the client computer system to the exact condition the client computer system was in at the time of image creation, without the need for time-consuming installations (e.g. operating system installation, application installation, customizations, etc.)
Unfortunately, the original client computer system and the new client computer system may not be identical. This can create usability issues with the image. If the image contained drivers for a certain set of hardware (such as modems, video cards, sound cards, processors, etc.), the image may not work correctly with a different set of hardware. Further, images may not be updated for months or years, exacerbating the problems between original hardware and new hardware. There is a need, therefore, for an improved method, article of manufacture, and apparatus for backing up and recovering information.